Unrelated parallel machine scheduling with sequence-and machine-dependent setup times and due date constraints

This study deals with the unrelated parallel machine scheduling problem with sequence- and machine-dependent setup times under due date constraints, a core topic for numerous industrial applications. In view of the computational complexity, an artificial bee colony (ABC) algorithm is presented to minimize the total tardiness. The performance of the proposed ABC algorithm is evaluated by comparing its solutions with those of state-of-the-art algorithms on the same benchmark problem set. Computational results show that the proposed ABC algorithm significantly outperforms existing algorithms for most problem combinations. This study offers a useful contribution to the growing body of both theoretical and practical ABC algorithms useful in scheduling problems.